John Buckeridge discovers more about Christianity magazine readers.
I feel overwhelmed. I’ve just finished reading the latest batch of completed survey forms from readers and the sheer number of you (more than 1,000, with more arriving daily) that have taken the time to complete a long form with many detailed questions is - well there’s no other word for it - overwhelming.
Not surprisingly the feedback includes a range of views about what you want to see in the magazine. The favourite page of one reader is sometimes the section another wants dropped. That said, some common threads have shone through.
The vast majority of you absolutely love the ‘Lucas on Life’ column, you are also very positive about Mark Greene’s ‘Connecting with Culture’ features. Significant numbers of you find the resource features and the reviews of books and CDs really helpful. Almost half (43%) of you say the magazine is getting better, only 3% say it is getting worse.
A key trend is reader loyalty; many of you have read this magazine for years. Two thirds have subscribed to Christianity for more than three years and 15% for more than 10 years! Some of you buy your copy from a Christian bookshop rather than subscribe – over half of Christianity readers visited their local Christian bookstore in the past month.
Another striking trend is just how many Christianity magazine readers actively serve in the church and wider community. A third of Christianity readers are ministers or on the church leadership team, while a similar number facilitate a home group. A quarter are involved in pastoral care or community work, 18% serve in youth or children’s work, and one in ten lead worship in their church. For more results from the readers survey turn to page 48.
It will take time to work through all the analysis, but I have already started to commission some new articles and columnists based on your comments, the results of which you will notice in forthcoming issues.
As a thank you for reading Christianity magazine please accept the complimentary book attached with this issue. Many thanks to Hodder Stoughton who published a special edition of R.T. Kendall’s excellent book ‘Total Forgiveness’ – just for Christianity readers. The message in this book is an important one – I pray it will bring liberation, hope and freedom to many.
John Buckeridge is the senior editor of Christianity magazine.
P.S. Due to the excessive additional postage costs we are unable to supply R.T. Kendall’s book free to overseas subscribers. However if you are an overseas subscriber and would like this book, simply enclose your magazine address label, with a cheque payable to CCP Ltd for £3.00, to cover pp. Send this to, CCP Ltd (RTK book), Broadway House, The Broadway, Crowborough, TH6 1HQ, England.
